Pardon the long title, wish I could be a bit more creative at naming this post without deviating too far from the topic. Anyway, I've wanted to try a SLR lens for a very long time, but have been hesitant due to 1.) the uncertainly of how well the pictures will turn, 2.) whether it's worth the money, 3.) possible encounters of unforeseen problems. Few days ago, after a few bottles of beer (I'm a lightweight), I finally pulled the trigger.
For those of you that ever wondered and wanted to try the adapter with cheap lenses, here's my 2 cents:
↑How it works: 1.) Find an affordable lens from EBay, Thrift stores, or a friend. 2.) Get your hands on a dedicated adapter (Note: I bought an MD -> M43 adapter for the Minolta MD lenses. Canon's would prolly get the FD -> M43, so on and so forth.) 3.) Get your M43 or DSLR camera body ready.
Pricing:
↑I can typically find a used SLR from Goodwill for less than $30. If the body works, GREAT, otherwise, adapt the lens for photo experimentation like I did here. This Minolta belongs to my brother from another mother. The body's not functioning. The 20mm f1.7 pancake's an AMAZING lens, but it's fairly pricy.
Reason to get a SLR lens #1 - It's cheap.
a closer look:
↑Lens at 50mm focal length. After calculating M43's crop factor, making this a 100mm f1.7 portrait killah!
When purchasing a used lens, make sure there's no fungus, scratches, or haze and all rings turns smoothly.
Large aperture tickles my fancy.
This is the bridge to connect the lens to the camera. This is my first lens adapter, so I'm not sure if it's on the thicker or thinner side compare to others. In general, it's slightly thicker than I expected.
Bought it via Amazon for $19.
Solid.
When combined:
Here are a few sizing references depending on what you have next to you. I tried my best (in the most convenient way) finding household items that most can find for comparison.
↑M43 users, it's about the same height as the EP1, 2, and 3.
↑...or about 2 20mm f/1.7 lens height.
↑Logitech fan boys and comp geeks, it's about as tall as the width of a Logitech M510 mouse.
↑For everyone else, it's about a third of a standard size banana, which is quite handy size for travel.
Reason to get a SLR lens #2 - It looks badass.
The ratio's not bad, not too front heavy.
Some micro 43rd cameras may require setting up in the menu section to shoot with an adapter. For Olympus, though, it's an auto process. So it's ready to shoot once you install the lens.
↑The display is quite sharp. You can get the focus right on the spot around 95% of the time.
It gets even better with the electrical viewfinder. I bought this along with my oly ep2 few months ago. That's how badly I wanted to shoot with an adapted SLR lens.
Basics out of the way, now the important stuff. How the photos actually turn out:
At f/1.7 wide open, the images are quite soft. A common issue for most adapted lenses when letting too much light in.
Bokehlicious:
At f/5.6 is super sharp:
At f/2.8, just as sharp!
Reason to get a SLR lens #3 - It produces stunning photos.
Images are superb. I would've never guessed they came from a lens ranges around $20. The soft images that it produces at wide open (f/1.7) is bit of a downer, but when stop down to just f/2.8, it's got terrific sharpness. It's a great alternative than our digital lens, if you're not looking for fast action shots that require autofocus.
'til next time,
-Benson|| Twitter || Facebook || 365. || Shop of Imagination ||